List of digital comics applications

1-Applicationsa- My top 3

1- Professeur Cyclope — ARTE Two examples
Lycéennes, Stefen Vuillemin
This comic, which is part of the digital comics magazine produced by the European cultural TV channel Arte, is made of a big column of successive animated gifs.Website

Le sourire de Rose, Sacha Goerg
Sacha Goerg uses the turbo media’s vocabulary with elegance. There is no animation, only several steps, several moments to be swiped.Website

2-Opertoon : Upgrade SoulEzra Claytan Daniels
Upgrade Soul is a science-fiction saga. The animation is really simple and limits itself to the blinking of the eyes and the use of sober 3d parallax in relation with the device’s accelerometer. The same one gesture (the swipe) activates the panels with transitions well managed by the authorAppWebsiteVideo demo

3- McSweeney’s editions : Sensitive TouchChris Ware
Sensitive Touch is a comic published within the McSweeney’s editions’ iPad magazine. When we swipe the screen either pictures appear on the same page, one next to the other, or a tracking shot is activated inside the same page, or there is a simple transition from one page to another.
Unfortunately, the comic doesn’t work on the new iPad’s version, probably because the app hasn’t been updated.Video demo

b- Then

4- Scrawl MagazineMichael Golan, Roni Fahima & Shiraz Fuman
Scrawl is a comic and illustration magazine. It looks a bit like a portfolio, with no real theme on each episode. The drawings and the interactions are nice, even if they don’t work perfectly on my iPad. It has been made with a tool named Mag + (I didn’t tested it).AppWebsiteVideo demo

5- Quelle histoire éditions : Napoleon, the graphic novelBruno Wennagel, Albin Quéru, Victor MalhauryUnfortunately, the rhythm is a little bit clumsy, as well as the use of the comics’ vocabulary. But as the actor’s voice and the drawings are great, we enjoy following the course of the story (of history).AppVideo demo

6- La Revue DessinéeFranck Bourgeron, Sylvain Ricard, Elhadi Yazi, Olivier Jouvray
La Revue Dessinée is a quarterly magazine, in digital and paper, dealing with reports, documentaries, and chronic comics.
The app is almost as the paper version, digitized, with digital contents in addition (mainly interviews).
By contrast, the website adds much more content, and is updated each week. You can also find digital contents, along the line of drawn webdocumentaries.AppWebsiteDrawn webdocumentaries

7- WormworldDaniel Lieske
Wormworld was a web saga, a long scroll by each episode. As it gained popularity, Daniel Lieske adapted his work to an app.AppWebsite

c- Also

ARTE : Anne Frank au pays du manga Alain Lewkowicz, Vincent Bourgeau, Marc Sainsauve et Herminien Ogawa
In this application, there is a lot of media (videos, sounds, diaporamas) hidden behind the frames. Too much in my opinion. Also, I personally have difficulties with the arrogant tone (but maybe honest) of their text, but it’s an interesting app that is delivered here.App Project on the websiteVideo demo

MoComics
Guy et Christian MoreillonTechnology permitting to make and read comics assembled in a long scroll with parallax.WebsiteVideo

Magnificat films : Je vous ai comprisFranck Chiche
Despite a comic-like aspect, this story is to be watched as a movie which moves forward all alone.App Video demo

Aquafadas Ave!Comics : BludzeeLewis Trondheim
Small motion inside a humoristic episodic story of a domestic cat by Lewis Trondheim.
Not updated anymore.AppVideo demo

Bookapp : LalaMalika Fouchier
The app is adapted from a paper book, so the reading system has been adapted with two navigation modes : the entire page, or frame by frame. This last mode is more suitable to an iPhone reading than an iPad reading.AppWebsite

Opertoon : Ruben and LullabyEzra Claytan Daniels
A speechless comic, where you have to manipulate the device to modify the tensions between the members of the couple on the screen.AppWebsiteVideo demo

d- The gang of the digital comics in which you have to make the frames appear one by one, with « in-between » transitions. And often, with a total recomposition of the page at each event.

Cognito Comics : Operation AjaxStephen Kinzer
The drawings aren’t fantastic, but we can see here some little systems that can be seen in several other comics app. For example, the borrowing of some vocabulary from the world of cinema (opening credits, zoom in the frame, tracking shot…), with short animations, composed on the pages.AppVideo demo

Imaginism Studios : Niko and the Sword of LightBobby Chiu, Kei Acedera
Ok so, in an ergonomic and interactive point of view, this comic is the inverse of what should be done. Actually, it’s a cartoon adapted in order to looks like a comic. But it’s not. You’re not master of the time (the animated parts – everywhere – are long and indispensable to understand the story). The frames are assembled in a view (oh, it’s a comic) and you have to tap outside the frames already on the screen to make appears the next one (oh, it’s interactive), but to find a good balance between the media, it doesn’t work like that.AppWebsiteArticle to find more about what I’m talking about

5- Operation OperaVincent Perriot, Simon KansaraThe use of the perspective is amazing and totally gives sens to the vertical scrolling reading. The story takes place in space, and, indeed, I feel like in Space Mountain reading this comics and losing my sense of where is the top, where is the bottom… It’s a simple trick, all made with the drawing.Website

11- Le long voyageBoulet
A long page’s comic without separated frames.Website

12- Notre Toyoto était fantastiqueBoulet
An entire page in a gif, so all the frames have the same rythmWebsite

13- 3 secondesMarc Antoine Matthieu
Password : I don’t know if I take the liberty to give you the password… Go to the library, open the book, you’ll find it in it.Website

14- Disney studio : Tron
The particularity of this linear animated (mainly translation, not animation) comics is a long smooth panoramic page.
The web version is actually down, but an app version that I haven’t tested yet exists.Video demo of the app

15- Sunderlevel : Nawlz
Stuart Campbell
I personally think that the drawings are horrible and the navigation is rough, but it exists, take a look at it…AppVideo demoWebsite

Coconino World
Unfortunately, this website is heavy and not updated anymore, but it’s beautiful and it have a lot of wonderful resources. Well, actually, it’s not webcomics at all but I wanted you to know that website :)Website